A trinket on Your Vanity
by LadyRuebo
Summary: No doubt, Bulma is a Man-Eater, and Vegeta refuses to be another charm on her bracelet. What happens when kindness is veiled by vanity? What happens when Vegeta gets a glimpse of her heart? This story takes place before their romance blossoms in the famous four year gap. I may continue the story if there is enough interest. Strong language and suggestive themes.
1. Chapter 1

**This was written purely for entertainment. I only own poor** Adam! **I own no aspect of the Dragon Ball Franchise(s). They belong to Akira Toriyama! I hope you enjoy.**

I've seen man eating plants before, on planet Gaboon when I was a boy. They were so large that they could swallow that ignorant woman whole. In fact, I've seen them much bigger than this little insignificant twig held captive by her in this window. Even the floral life is pathetic here- how fitting. The little weed is only moments from death; I'm sure that she knows to feed it, doesn't she?

"You're just another trinket. Die with some dignity. Go ahead and give up your ghost if you have one. As if you hear me…"

The woman has at least a thousand pieces of clothing in that abyss of a wardrobe that humans call a 'closet'. Silk and fur, 'precious' is the word they use, but I can vaporize it all in an instant. What is the point of this collection? In a blink of an eye I can force their last breaths. She may be ignorant, but she is not a fool- surely she knows that.

"Hey Vegeta, there you are! Do me a favor, please. Answer the front door… my hands are full"

How can you wave at me if your hands are full? The only clean thing on her was her smile.

"What the hell is all over you? Your hands don't look too 'full' "

"First it's grease from my lab. Second, you have still yet to master the use of air quotes… use two fingers to do that. Third, go answer the damn door! I'm busy!"

She'll understand this.

"I can't believe that you were a prince! If you want to be such a jerk, go flip off whoever is at the front door!"

Damn she looks good when she's mad at me.

"I am true royalty. Not an imposter bitchcess!"

I've seen this face many times before, but I can never read is she is angry or inquisitive.

"Vegeta, what are you doing in my room anyway?!"

Fuck this; I will answer the damn door. That took longer than I thought...

The front door is the same deep red as her self-idolatry station that she refers to as a 'vanity'. _Vain_ … now this makes sense.

"Hi…"

 _He reeks of confidence... oh yeah a real winner._

"State your business."

"My name is Adam. I hope this is a good time."

"Speak now, while I allow it..."

"Ms. Briefs and I were in a conference together. I live just two blocks away, and I figured I would just stop by. May I speak to her if she is home?"

 _I smell your intentions. She's going to eat you alive. You'll be her new favorite toy if your lucky._

He can't be any more than five feet tall. Bulbous black framed glasses weigh down his small snubbed nose. His hair hangs just above his shoulders in oily strands. His brown slacks are tightened high above his thin waist. His red checkered shirt is stuffed into his pants; not a button is out of place. His smile is awkward, even pedophilic. Either he cannot be trusted, or he is just this unfortunate. She will not be interested…

"Adam, you're here!"

The only thing she is proficient at is sneaking up on me and busting my eardrums. She's so pushy for a small weak creature.

"Excuse you woman!"

"Pay no mind to Vegeta. I'm so glad you came by!"

And she ignores me. I will take my exit here. maybe I can get back to training!

"I've brought you those flies you asked me about at the conference!"

"Thank you so much. The florist thought it was dead and insisted that I let her throw it away. I bought it and brought it home, but I can't get the poor thing to eat."

"These will definitely help."

"Would you like to come inside and have some tea?"

"No thank you. I must be off now".

She always slams the door so hard. She must be coming up the spiral stairs; I can smell her perfume floating into the corridor. Why couldn't she just walk by me, like the stranger that she is? No, she has to touch me as she walks by. I can't bring myself to complain…

"Thank you, Vegeta"

I can still feel her fingertips glide across my shoulder and down my forearm. My hand feels like it's on fire.

Could this be what kindness feels like? Maybe my hands can't make stupid 'air quotes' or understand human gestures. They do understand touch, however.

Stupid woman- maybe she's not such a man eater.

 **Thank you for reading. Please read and review! I'm desperate to know what you think. ^-^**


	2. Muddy Perception

It looks like someone has placed muddy water in this kettle. The aroma is overwhelming, as it always is every afternoon. When I roamed the galaxies I did all that I could to avoid drinking such smut, but this woman insists on drinking this every single day…

"A watched pot never boils Vegeta…"

"Yeah, well so does this piece of crap…"

"Oh Hush! To make good tea, you have to be patient. They say that the mood you're in when you make it reflects how it tastes…", Bulma teased.

"Then you can wait for the mud-water!"

"Just sit down for a few minutes…"

She couldn't just tell me to sit down; she had to lead me to the table. I can still feel her hand wrapped around my index and middle finger. She squeezed my hand.

"Vegeta, is your hand bleeding?", she said as she examined her thin fingers.

I've stained her hand crimson and I looked at my glove again.

I couldn't summon the words to fend her off.

"It's okay, Vegeta. Come with me tough guy…"

Her voice was smooth, nearly innocent. My name rolled off of her tongue so slowly, almost in three syllables. Again, she pulled me along by my fingers and I allowed it.

"Sit down."

I did as she asked, without even thinking about it.

"What are you doing, woman?"

"Taking your nasty gloves off…"

"I can wash my own hands…"

"Relax"

She plunged my hand under the warm running water. She removed a black bottle from the medicine cabinet and poured the fizzing substance over my hand. She carefully patted it dry like she could damage me. Does she know that I don't need this, that I will be healed by tomorrow? Does she know that this wound will be ripped open again tomorrow as I destroy the thoughtless bots that her father designs? Does she know what I could do to her…or want to do to her rather?

"The kettle is whistling. The tea must be ready!"

"I will not be joining you. I've already wasted too much time…"

"Lighten up, it surely won't hurt you… training can wait a few minutes more"

"What the hell, woman!"

How did I succumb to her feeble attempt to force me back to that table- Damn her. She practically shoved me back into the kitchen. I can still feel her hands on my shoulder blades.

"You need to relax for a while. Once you have my tea, you'll never go back! Now, sit your over worked money-ass down."

Her index finger was drilling into my chest, but I can't bring myself to even brush her away.

"Whatever."

"Here take this…be careful it's hot. It took hundreds of years to develop this recipe."

"Woman the individual who decided to experiment with different types of leaves to make this brew had too much time on their hands, and they weren't trying to train for world annihilating androids. Must be nice."

"Vegeta, thank you for doing this."

I nearly spit the bitter substance out of my mouth. Her small red cup rested in her palms.

"Yamcha isn't coming over until tomorrow, and Adam could not stay. I enjoy your company."

I can only bear to stare into those eyes for so long. I found this tea to be suddenly quite interesting, until I felt it. My knuckles were turning white from tension. Her fingers glided across my bare knuckles.

"Why do you wear those gloves all the time?"

"Can't you just mind your own business…?"

"Are you germaphobic?"

"What? No woman… My skin is a continuation of myself. In many cultures it is a common courtesy, a formality.

"Do saiyans shake hands then? How did you greet each other?"

"Diplomats and royalty often shook hands, but the glove is a separation between them, a formal agreement, and a reminder that each has their own agenda. As for the lower echelon it was not uncommon to bow or shake with bare hands. If a lower class individual or outsider was greeting their superior a kiss on the bare hand or cheek could be appropriate."

"Well… Good afternoon, prince."

She gathered my hand into her grasp, two fingers on both sides. Her soft lips pressed against my coarse skin. It was as if the breath had been sucked from my chest. I was unable to rebuke her.

"Bulma?",

Her eyes wondered to her weakling who just barged through the door with a bundle of dark red flowers in hand. Humans are infatuated with them- roses right? How ironic that such a gift is also used adorn graves. Surely they will make her think of the dead…

" Yamcha, I thought you weren't coming today…"

"Surprise!"

My hands are now _bare_ and _empty_ on this wooden table. My cup is empty…

 **Author's Note: Thank you for reading chapter two! Please read and review. Let me know what you think; your opinion is valuable! ^-^**


	3. Into a Puff of Smoke

"Awfully chilly tonight, son…"

Son... How foreign it is to me. I have grown accustom to being under such surveillance. I wasn't sure that his straining eyes could even see me in such little light. The tangle of lights and people scurrying like rats would be much more amusing to gawk at. I'm sure of it. The question remains. Why?

"It is…", I chose. The words grinded off of my tongue with difficulty.

"Even a young fellow like yourself could catch a cold in this, without a shirt and all."

There it is. Most think a gesture such as this would entail concern, but for who? It could simply be that he doesn't want to contract whatever hypothetical illness I may get.

"I never get sick."

"It would be interesting to see how your body reacts to Earth bound illnesses... and the treatments for them."

That's where _she_ gets it. Even that wink. I find myself pondering … You mix a spacey semi-senile man full of genius with a mild mannered, ditzy home attendee and you get that Bossy Bitch. 1 and 1 should not equal three. Genetics told natural law to fuck off that day… I guess.

"Why, you could be the cure for the common cold, son."

It's strange that he invents contraptions that clean the air and hovering transport craft that secrete no foul smog because his mouth produces more pollution than any piece of equipment that I have ever cared to witness. The taste must be uncanny…

"Dad! There you are."

Great, now the woman's here.

"Yes, I was well past due for a smoke break."

"I finished recalibrating those circuits for you."

"Thank you, dear; my fingers aren't what they used to be. Old Arthur and I will have to get to work. "

He hobbled off into the smoke that he created, with a new cigarette hanging from his mouth, as always. He snubbed the other out, leaving it in the small sand filled disk. Arthur? Who could this be- poor bastard something is always on fire or exploding in that damned lab.

"Bulma dear, don't stay out too long. Are we expecting Yamcha to come over this evening?"

"No."

Now I have to listen to this. Fantastic.

"Oh… I'll just let your mother know that you will be joining us for dinner tonight."

"No, not tonight dad."

"Of course dear…"

Just when I thought it would be over.

"Don't stay out too late son, remember to come eat."

Forget no… avoid it perhaps. The woman, always clung to that balcony, just like her father.

"Daddy…", she snickered.

Her hand rested over the small white box that he had forgotten, just as he always does.

I may regret this…

"Woman, who is this Arthur?"

"Who?"

"Arthur? Can he reassemble the gravity chamber when you are indisposed with that weakling?"

He must be significant, or I have struck a nerve. She actually turned around to address me. I hate that grin, yet I find myself being sucked in…. closer and closer.

"Vegeta… Dad is talking about arthritis. A painful condition in his joints that can develop with age."

My father… I remember his hands, from long ago. The long scar that ran across his knuckles. I believe it made him think of her- my mother.

"Vegeta"

She quietly sat down next to me. She wants something. Her eyes are scorched red. Her cheeks are twitching.

"What?"

"Do saiyans hurt as they get older? Your joints?"

"Yes, sometimes- if they are strong enough…"

I can see curiosity blooming in her eyes.

"Really?"

Her anxious fingers tapped the small white box.

"Yes, the radiation from the energy can deteriorate the joints over time. The pain comes from constant repair."

"Oh, do you want to try one?"

She offered a single cancer-stick hanging from the end of the box.

"Keep those filthy things to yourself…"

"Why are you staring at them then… here?"

She twiddled it between her oil stained fingers before she brushed it against her lips. Another small box emerged from her lab coat pocket. Flames erupted from the end of the match as she struck it against the corner of the box.

"Like this, Vegeta…"

She lit the end of it and took a short breath. Smoke poured in small rings from her mouth.

"It's okay to be curious.", she ensured me with her glittery eyes.

She offered it to me from her fingers, pulling it from her own mouth. I'm going to regret this little taste… aren't I. I took the bait. I can feel myself choking as the smoke filtered into my lungs.

"You morons suck this shit down your lungs!", I coughed.

"You're too much! The mighty 'prince of all saiyans' defeated by a cigarette!"

How dare you laugh at me, like covering your mouth with your hand makes it any less noticeable…It's a poison worse than this smoke.

"Shut-up!"

"Gosh, don't be that way. Thank you Vegeta, for the good laugh. I really needed it…", she said as she stood from her seat.

"What did he do now, woman?"

She struggled to raise her eyes to me before she left that porch to go back inside.

"Vegeta… won't you come inside with me?"

 **Thank you for reading chapter 3, please let me know your thoughts- they are very important. I apologize that it has took me so long to update this. I hope you are enjoying it! ^-^**


	4. A Waltz

Go inside?

"No…I must return to training."

"Well, it wouldn't hurt you. Mr. I like to spend all my time alone- antisocial, ass."

She is stubborn; I'll give her credit for that.

"No."

" It would do you some good…"

"I said no."

She has made it clear I need to go where she can't.

"Vegeta! Really, you're going to fly off of the balcony to get away from me? _Afraid of little ole me_?"

"No, woman… Just leave me be! One more word and I'll….."

" You'll what? You could push me out of the way. Or you could throw me off of this balcony if you really wanted to… Just come help me for a few minutes?"

"Help?"

"It may even help you with your training?"

Let's see how she likes it.

"You run a business. You know how to make deals. Tell me what he did and I will assist you ."

"That's not fair Vegeta!"

"Aren't you used to such _private_ endeavors?

"Fine. Fine! We have a deal."

The sound of her voice was painfully close. She leaned again against the balcony rail.

"Vegeta, please come down."

Her smile would be worse than any infectious illness- such a plague upon man. Such a strange sensation, when her dainty hand came to my thigh. Why do I have to oblige you- useless creature?

"Thank you…"

"Hmn."

I had almost forgotten how sensitive humans are to temperature changes. The warm air inside the building was sweltering to cater to their weak bodies.

"Who designed this building woman?"

The spiraling hallways and stair cases are enough of a maze even for those that live here.

"My father that's what he does. I really think you needed a break."

"Funny coming from a woman who literally lives where her work is"

I can see her studying me from the corner of her blue eyes.

" Well, it's convenient…"

"Even animals know not to shit where they sleep."

"Oh, hush Vegeta! Just relax."

She brought her index finger to _my_ lips. She pulled me into her lab, if you would call it that, by my wrist. The walls themselves are stained with the shadow of her experiments. She nearly tripped over an enormous chuck of broken down machinery lying on the floor. Tools were strewn across the greasy tile floor. I can only imagine what her bedroom must look like. Wait…

"You'll stand right here."

She released my wrist from her grip. Her heels clopped loudly on the tile as she walked to her desk. Excited about it aren't we? She snatched something from the screeching wooden drawer of her desk. Oh shit….

"Let me see the bottom of your shoes..."

"What?"

"Hold your foot up like this…"

She bent her knee and lifted her heel behind her back, as if I didn't know how….damn woman.

"What are you doing?"

"Just hold up your foot…"

"Fine."

How ironic that you would bow before me, while I help _you_.

"And these go here…"

She rubbed the tiny tear drop dots with her thumbs that she had peeled onto my collarbones. Both were crystal clear and soft blue, the color of the western waters- the pacific I believe is what it is called. She then dappled the dots on herself with her fingertips…

"You're left handed correct?"

"If you mean it is my dominant hand… yes"

"Now, Put your right hand here…"

On your waist…. How long has it been since I've felt the bone of a woman's hip underneath my thumb.

"Give me the other…. Don't forget your own strength!"

Do you think winking at me is going to make it any easier to be mindful of your weak fingers?

"Remember to relax. It may not work if you don't. Trust me; I can cut the tension with a knife"

"Whatever woman… just get this over with."

"Hiera..Please upload track seven, function three."

Even the computer programs here are named, according to her will.

"Upload completed…"

My muscles contracted and bent underneath this pattern she created. We began to twirl round and round the junk-yard of a lab. Her laughter bounced off of the metallic walls. I've heard many explosions and screams of terror erupting from these doors, but laughter- haunting laughter, especially my own. I twirled her on my finger and dared not to look into her eyes. We went once more round and round to the tune.

"You're so fast, Vegeta!"

She cast her head upon my chest as we went around one last time.

"What did you expect, woman? You call this dancing?"

"I didn't expect this…"

My feet stopped right where we had started. She slowly looked up at me as she moved away, reluctant to release her grip from my shoulder.

"Now, you've had your folly. Tell me what the fool has done."

"A deal is a deal, Vegeta….He was supposed to come over and help me test my muscle mapping invention today. I'm just not sure what has been happening lately."

I know that peculiar look, that smell… The hunter often knows the hunted.

"You best not be lying to me, woman."

"Whoa….whoa. What did you say?"

"You heard me. Do not lie to me."

I can see the cover up written on your face just as well as the poise of disbelief on your lips.

"I told you I would tell, and I did. That is all that you get."

I have things of higher importance to accomplish than to stand here and gaggle with you.

"Oh, before you go. Do tell… Saiyans also danced didn't they?"

Damn my tongue! You think you're clever don't you. I will not forget about him.

"It was not pathetic enough to call it that, but yes…"

"Can you show me?"

…Still under control of these tiny tear drops on my shoulders. I wrapped my arms around you. You gasped when I took you in the air with me, perhaps for fear I would drop you. I swayed you in my arms for a moment more before I decided to bring you to the ground. I released you in the hope that I would be able to finally walk away, taking advantage of your silence. Just before I made it through the door…

"The girl ,whoever she was, was so lucky to have you as a dancing partner…."

"No. No she wasn't. My mother was far from fortunate…"

I tried to wipe away her sticky invention from my chest at last. The taste of acid collected on the tip of my tongue. They weren't there, nor were they on the bottoms of my shoes- they had fallen off.

* * *

 **Thank You for reading. I hope that you are enjoying this story. I am sorry It has taken me so long to update. I am open to questions, comments, and reviews. Your opinions are important, and I would love to hear them! ^-^**


	5. Destination Darkness

**I appreciate feedback! Thank you all for reading.**

* * *

The sun has forsaken this mud ball once again, taking its reprieve from this day. Humans… they think the dark of night is a time, a matter that they invented- nothing more than a creation of their imaginations. I used to remind beings like them that darkness is a place. Usually it is a destination of destruction. The term 'silent night' was coined by a fool. Nothing about my nights has ever been silent, until now.

What the hell is wrong with this planet, these people, _that woman_?

Maybe the walls of the gravity chamber are too thick to hear? No screaming, no crackling flames of destruction…

Maybe if I close my eyes...nope. I am surrounded by the sound of silence, engulfed in nothing. This planet is well overdue, thousands of years without true calamity. The dirt I stand on is proof that I have ignored my calling to slay for all too long.

Wait, what is that? Wailing? Am I finally losing my damn mind here?

The night air is cool on this planet, but not cold enough to distract me from _it_. I must be coming from inside, being so muffled that I had to focus to pick up on it.

"Is it you Bulma? Are you the one wailing in the night?"

Her name is like venom on my tongue, like spitting into the wind to spite myself. I feel heavy like a chunk of lead on this concrete floor. I can't move let alone rid this poison from my ears. The thought was invasive, an unclean plague on my mind. That best not be you crying woman.

Tears are shed few and far between in the galaxies. I should know. Many would wait silently for their death. Some made insignificant noises, grunts of an animal heading to slaughter. The tears of a saiyan were seen as wounds in the spirit, making ruin of their pride. They would be a disgrace, not to mention an instant decline in class was expected. Human tears they are an enigma to me. Does sorrow bring water to your eyes woman? It must be more than a chemical reaction in your human brain?

 _Shit!_

"What are you staring at, woman?"

"Excuse me? You're the one who came barging on?"

Don't get snippy with me! I can snub you from existence! Yet all I manage to do is hang awkwardly in this doorway. Stupid creature.

"No, literally, what are you looking at?"

"Oh… just watching a movie."

"A what?"

"It's supposed to be fun. Come watch with me."

Her pale hand patted the seat of the sofa.

"What is this, animal hide?"

"It's called leather. So yeah it sort of is. Don't look so disgusted it's just cattle hide."

Your laugh disgusts me.

"Here, do you want to try some popcorn?"

She shifted the yellow pieces in the half-empty bowl, before shoving it into my lap.

"No."

"I think you'll like it."

The fluffy wad can rot between her fingers before I would even consid-

 _FLICK_

… eating from her fingers. Too late now. Damn.

" I bet you didn't think I could aim like like it, don't you?"

"It's decent."

I used to not be able to fathom how they could spend hours of their time in front of these entertainment stations. But this, this is different…

"What is this?"

So much for keeping my mouth shut. It was like watching myself, like looking into a mirror, and they're screaming again... fucking fantastic.

"It's called King Kong. I thought you would find it interesting. I figured you just wanted food when you barged in. Do you need something?"

"No."

I've indulged you far too long.

"I wish you would just stay. I didn't mean it that way. I could use some company, Vegeta. Mom and dad are out of town, and…"

"No. I must train."

I've wasted enough time on you

"Saiyans are so weird…"

"Oh, well forgive me woman. I had forgotten how superior you puny humans are, Wailing about everything!"

"You… you were…"

Her voice trembled with an odd disbelief. Why can't I pull away from the grip of your weak finger, dainty creature? I may not be able to pry myself away from your blue eyes, but all I hear, all I see is your sorrow.


	6. Identity

**Here we go, here is chapter 6! Everyone should thank 'Kitty in the Box' for this chapter; thank you for your encouragement. Please enjoy! Feel free to leave a review. Edited.**

Who needs a work of fiction, or a retelling of events by sly tongues. No saiyan, that is who. Humans go as far as performing absurd experiments to understand their own minds. Yet they fail to understand their own dreams. From what I have gathered, it is a pseudoscience on this planet, Full of mysticism and false Deities. My heart is a stranger to pity, she is nothing more than a Harlot draped in the robes of a queen. She's a thief you see, but she will not steal from me. She knows better; royalty recognizes itself. Deception is the jewel in her crown, and I will not be fooled by her candied lips. If I had been a softer man, then maybe I would have followed her to her bed. Even now she calls out for me.

 _Oh, Vegeta, do you feel anything?_

I have been able to Ignore her pleas for now, and I have never failed. Although I resist, I taste her perfume despite the distance. She dares to call out to me again.

 _Humans, aren't they pitiful? They don't know who they are – drowning in conformity to their leaders. They forget what they are._

I squeeze her tighter in the coil of my fingers. How much louder can her voice get as I squeeze the breath from her lungs? The full moon brings a shimmer to her dead eyes, replacing the light of her fleeting soul.

 _You should listen to me, Vegeta._

"Shut up! Who are you to talk back to me?"

Her skin muddled, turning into the color of soot although the flash of my red eyes caused her skin to glow. She fell limp in my vice grip. Her head rolled over my thumbnail on her thin neck, and her bones splintered through her skin. Her red hair swayed over her fixed gaze. Her lips were sewn shut by the needle of death. Yet, I hear her voice. A whisper in the wind that teases the tips of my pointed ears.

 _How much more guilty are the powerful when they fail to do what it right?_

"you're dead! Dead to me – to anyone who has lived long enough!"

Her skull rattled on her neck as I squeezed tighter and twirled my wrist back and forth, her limbs flailed cold and stiff. I opened my palm, and she flopped to the rubble below – returning to nothingness. I plucked the lifeless body by the ripped fabric of her blue robe and rolled her between my fingers.

 _You're angry with me after all these years, her voice still whispered in the dark._

" You are nothing but an illusion, false hope for the weak."

 _Oh, Vegeta… though you may try to be, you were not carved out of stone. You still do not understand._

"You want to see what I made of, whore?"

At first she slid across my tongue. I feel her flesh tear on my canines in my mouth.

Gulp.

This great ape swallowed her whole – there was no squirming, no tickling in my neck where others have struggled – nothing.

 _Vegeta, you have forgotten…?_

" Pity, I know you to be a liar."

Gulp.

 _Vegeta… you have forgotten me. Do you not recognize my face? You have mistaken me for someone else for all these years._

All at once, that great ape had faded away. I was no more than waist high to the tyrant himself. We stood among the members of the court. Their very presence damned me to humiliation. There I stood quiet and astute, while he advertised his livestock in foreign tongue; a tongue that I knew well.

 _Don't worry, I am not disappointed_ … she informed me in a listless voice, hidden away somewhere in the recesses of my mind. I dare not look up from my feet to find her, for it is a grave offense to simply make eye contact with Freiza, even if by accident.

"You see, Vegeta is one of the fastest members of the extermination crew. His services can be leased for a fair wage if you desire."

" He is a tad small…"

" Don't let his size for you. He is more than capable."

"Where did you fetch this one from ?"

" Poor thing, he's among the last of his kind, it would've been such a waste… even if he is monkey garbage."

" How kind of you, Lord Freiza to offer him Solace."

I could not hide within myself anymore. I looked up at his gleaming eyes.

" Oh my, Vegeta are those tears I see?"

" No, sir.", I answered.

"Why – they are streaming down your face as we speak… Are you telling me that I'm wrong?"

The crowd – his guests gawk at us, and their feet stop shuffling. The wet droplets on my face are louder than their chatter.

" No, sir."

"Your voice and your face bear different witnesses, Vegeta."

My cheeks scrunched up beneath my eyes and my lips trembled. The veins bulged in my forehead.

"Sir…"

A loud bang didn't even pry my attention away. Perhaps a server dropped a platter behind the quiet audience, but their eyes remained on us. His white hand lifted my chin until it was level to his eyes. My shoulders shuffled uncomfortably.

"Awww, Tsk tsk tsk, sad are we? Why so morose?"

That smile was worse than any physical blow or wandering hand at night.

" No."

" Don't be shy. Tell us, what is festering inside of you? Is _someone_ hurting you? Oh _I_ will make them pay…"

His snide grin broke the seal on his lips, and laughter dripped from his mouth. He kept his hand on my cheek and his pupils dilated when the taste of fear lofted from my skin.

"No, sir…"

"Hahahahahaha… what?"

"No."

Bwah! Hahahahahahahahahahah… he he. Again."

"No!"

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!"

" NO, NO, NO, NO, NO… NO!"

 _Don't you see, Vegeta. You have been spared because you are of use to him. You are alive because you are hated-you are his favorite… thing to hate. The abuse spares you over everyday. Your loneliness was your fathers best gift. I, mercy called the king to forsake you. I have made you unloved- that is your mercy, so you may live. Pity would have merely allowed you to be stillborn from your mothers womb…don't mistaken me for someone else again._

My eardrums nearly ruptured from the sound of my own voice, that was not what ended the vision.. It was the hard brash noise of flesh striking the floor.

"Vegeta! Are you okay? What were you dreaming about?"

Oh, Woman…


	7. Dream Catcher

**I hope everyone enjoys. Please feel free to leave a review. All comments are appreciated. Edited.**

No explanation is needed, it is quite clear why you would be laying on your right hip on the carpet in my bedroom, and I am still in the bed. The comforter has snaked around my bare leg. Why can't I break away from your gaze, woman?

"Another nightmare huh?"

I will not even humor such a question.

"You would think she would learn not to shake me awake."

"Yeah, yeah tough guy…"

That is less than appropriate for you to say. I am not the one who has to climb off of the floor. This is the third night this week that I've watched you crawl from your knees to the edge of my bed.

"You didn't bang up your feeble bones did you?"

"No, nah I'm fine."

I recognize that strange quirk in your brows … I've said too much. Even I had difficulty recognizing my voice. Where was the dryness?

"Your sheets are soaked!"

Do you think I like stewing in a puddle of my own sweat?

"What of it woman? Get out!"

Or at least allow me to cover myself – clueless creature. Have you no shame, staring at me while you wear nothing more than an oversized T-shirt to cover your underwear. Great, your underwear… of all things to be discussing.

"Chill out Badman – you're going to wake up the whole complex. Again."

There you go again, propping your hands against your hips – you bossy hypocrite. Oh yes… Pull your hair back, like it's appearance matters, yet it somehow eludes you that we are in our undergarments.

"Here…"

"What are you- Ahhh that's cold!"

Somehow you've managed to crawl in this bed. I dare not say my bed; I would never hear the end of it. That is my bed blah, blah, blah- _I just let you use it-_ wah wah, wah- _You whined that the guest bed was too small._

The cool sting of the washcloth has worn off, but she is still here patting my forehead. Why? The soft skin of her leg is grazing my thigh. The fine hairs on my back are standing on end. I believe that they are called 'goosebumps' on this planet. Why must you spend so much time on this?

"All right, that's enough woman…"

I have stood before some of the most feared beings in the universe, and I have never allowed anyone to strike me and walk away without reconning. It may not of been instant but eventual and timely, yet on this dark morning I have allowed you're dainty hand to swat my grasp away, like it's nothing.

"Relax, I am almost done. Let me dry your back, and…"

"And… no. No more."

I know exactly where this is going. I recognize that little twinge in her voice.

"What I was going to suggest, before you rudely interrupted me, is that we go downstairs to the lab."

"And do what?"

"I think I can help you with-"

"No!"

Don't tell me my voice alone was almost enough to knock you from the mattress. Again... oh woman. Most things groan for one reason or another – whether it be pain or just native tongue, but not you – not Bulma the queen of this detestable madness. I have made you angry. Kami, those eyes are proof enough.

"He He, funny because I had just fallen asleep. You get me? Just a few minutes ago, just shy of 3:00 AM… and then… I hear you in here screaming so loud that it could wake the dead!"

The undead, like on the moons of Katoma six? Dammit…

"Wake the dead? Right now?"

"Really… really? You have got to be kidding-"

Speechless again,your silence tells all.

"Erm-Okay Vegeta… forget that part; I don't even want to know…"

She's fast for a human. One moment her arms are thrown in the air, then she is digging in my wardrobe- wait?"

"What the hell? Get out of there!"

"Listen big boy, if I can wash your clothes, I can go through them ."

"You little-"

Kakarrot always says, 'your reflexes are killer'. Yeah, some killer- I couldn't catch my shorts before they pelted my face in a crumpled wad.

"Get dressed, butter fingers."

"Fine but do not disturb me ever again!"

Turning your back to me makes this no easier.

"Let's go. Are you done slowpoke?"

"Yes, now if we're going, go! Don't just stand there."

"You don't have to tell me twice."

"Why are you going toward the north hall? The neumo elevator is to the right. Is your brain still sleeping?"

"No, jackass, it is out of service right now. We've gotta hoof it down the steps."

"Oh, no. We have already wasted too much time."

"How do we get down there then, great wise one?"

There is a window right there, clueless.

"What are you? Oh shit- put that window back down Vegeta!"

Who is the boss now? Charming or not I will sweep you off your feet – literally.

"Let's go woman."

" Wah, Vegeta put me down! You cannot just toss me around like a ragdoll!"

"Oh ,toss you, you say?"

"Please! No! Put me down you jerk!"

" Whoops…"

" Vegeeeeetaaa!"

One second: down the hall. Two seconds: scale the steps. Three seconds: front yard.

" AAaaah-uh."

"With one second to spare."

I never thought you would stop screaming. Have my arms took your breath rather than the ground knocking it from you? Anytime now… go on… you can stand.

"Vegeta…"

Don't sound so surprised. I never thought your hands would slip from behind my neck, ah finally. You've let go.

"I have Butterfingers woman?"

"How did you- You dropped me! No worse, you threw me!"

"Call me slow poke again… I would not have even let your feet get dust on them from the ground."

Now I must return you to the concrete I suppose. Back to your illusion of control.

"You could've killed me you asshole!"

"But look we're right in front of the lab... where you wanted us to go… in the middle of the night."

Your legs are still trembling with fear?

"Let's just get this over with Vegeta. Follow me."

"Yeah, like I don't know what to do. All I have done since I've lived here is 'follow you'."

Does she know what a mop is or how to wipe the dust from her own inventions?

"This is a first."

"What?"

"A woman who can't clean…"

"Excuse you!"

Yet again you're faster than expected. Spin around any faster and your heels will catch fire.

"First of all, _I can_ but I don't because _I do what I want_. I make bots just for that, thank you very much."

"What are we looking for, woman?"

"You mean what am I looking for? I've already found it."

How many times have I been face-to-face to you in this cursed room? Is this what you draged me out here for, a tiny orange coin that is only 1/100 of your lowest form of currency. What is it called again?

"You brought me here for one 1/100?"

"First of all, it is called a zeni."

Of course she would laugh.

"What in this galaxy do you hope to buy with that minuscule thing?"

"Your thoughts… A zeni for your thoughts."

Are you serious? Your hand is like frost bite on my flushed cheek.

"Thoughts on what?"

"Not really silly! This isn't a coin. Hold still."

"What is this?"

"Something for your bad dreams , just stick it behind your ear, just like this… when you wake up in the morning just pull it off. It captures your nightmares. I give you the 'dream capsule'! When its memory is full you can upload them or delete them."

I had no idea my ears could become so hot just from the trail left by your fingertips. I wish I had the will to shove your other pale, calm hand from my chest.

" Oh, I almost forgot the other thing we came for!"

"What is that?"

SMACK

" That's for the sarcasm and throwing me out of a window!"

Not even enough force to quirk my neck, but she actually tried it…

"I could really hurt you, wipe you from existence in an instant, Bulma… most people on this mudball could hurt you."

She just struck me. I just felt the back of her hand against my jaw, and I let her… I let her.

"Now you use my name… I know you could if you wanted to, but that's it isn't it. If you wanted to…"

"Almost nowhere in the galaxies is battery of the physically weaker sex whether it be male, female, or whatever they are is acceptable, without good cause. That is universal; no surprise there. Is it only hear that it is perfectly acceptable for the weaker to strike the more advantaged for no reason?"

"Wait, wait… did I actually hurt your feelings?"

Don't sound so guilty now, after you've already done it, besides… I have no feelings. I can't.

"No!"

"I can't believe it!"

"Leave it alone Bulma!"

There it was, my voice… my real voice. She nearly jumped out of her skin.

"Okay, okay. Anyway, no it's not alright. I should not of smacked you, Vegeta. I'm sorry, but it is also not acceptable to throw people who can't fly out of the damn window!"

"I caught you! I wasn't going to let you- where are you going now? I'm sick of you turning your back on me! You will listen to me when I-"

"Just bring it to me when it's full. It will start beeping when you try to put it on. I won't look at them and less you want me too… I'm going back to bed. Are you coming or not?"

"I will leave here when I'm damn ready."

I've been left in the dark too many times to count. It rarely happens because I've chose it. She flipped the light switch and I'm not budging for her anymore… at least tonight that is.

"Alright suit yourself, …sweet dreams Vegeta…bad man."

Her silhouette has left the doorway, and now I am alone. My mind goes with her…


	8. Monster Bride

**Hello Everyone! I hope everyone enjoys. Feel free to leave a review. I know it is a few days late, but happy Halloween!**

She complains that I am excellent at ignoring people. Like she has any room to talk about it. She pouts when she hears that she's got it wrong, even from her own father. She is wrong again – about this matter anyway – wrong about me.

"Do you hear me, Vegeta? Wait yeah, that's right… I'm better off talking to that wall over there. It might actually listen to me."

" I'm not deaf; I can hear you."

" Then look at me when I talk to you."

" Later… later I'll look a you."

"Please don't go. You can ignore me all you like, but you can't ignore the needs of your body forever."

There you go again – assuming that I 'ignore' you.

"For a genius you're a dense female."

" Did you just admit-"

Don't look so surprised about that. The truth is the truth regardless if I like it or not.

"Tell me that you know the difference between 'ignoring you' and blatant disregard. Someone must be responsible and prepare."

" Responsible?! With the way you act ? I hardly think you hardly know what that is!"

" The point is that the androids will be here; this is not speculation. Do you want to survive it?"

" Yes, of course I do, but Vegeta you're going to kill yourself if you keep going like this. Then what will happen?"

" There is no proof of that!"

" You have done nothing but train for days!"

" Answer me then woman: do you want to die?"

"No, but you will if you don't eat or sleep!"

" Whatever."

"You'll figure it out when you see yourself in the mirror. You look like the dead warmed over!"

" Good tactic – resulting to calling me a corpse. I'm leaving now."

There is your cue woman. Push the button and unlock the door, that little blue underneath your desk.

"Don't look at me like that, woman."

Just push the button.

"Like what, Vegeta?"

How ironic, the 'panic button' you installed in almost every room of the complex would have served the opposite purpose just a few months ago – to keep me out.

" I'll let you out alright…"

Now you give me your full attention? Pay attention to what you're doing. This never ends well, even if you are just opening the door.

"Vegeta, this office doesn't have a security mechanism. Just turn the knob and pull. Tada!"

Oh by the Gods, no… not here. No, why on this damn speck in space?

" Earth to Vegeta. Why are you just standing there?"

They may have caused the plague back on my planet when I was just a child. Wiped out a quarter of the population if I recall. That's it though isn't it… I was a child. Now I'm a man- not this time motherfucker…

"What's the matter? Are you Okay?"

"Get behind me or you will surely die!"

" Oh, Kami!"

" GALICK GUN!"

"Ahhhhh!, No, are you crazy?!"

I don't see it squirming anymore. Disgusting damn worm, nothing but a parasite. Good. It looks like I acted just in time. Now only to deal with you.

"Before you complain about your wall..."

" You think I'm upset about the wall."

" I'm sure that you'll be grateful that I saved you, but I know you. The attack itself cannot kill the creature nor can the heat from the blast. They are capable of manipulating their own energy; they evolved to do this. Many creatures on other planets do the same thing. The only way to kill it is to blind it, frying the central cortex in the process."

" Thank you, thank you so much for that Vegeta, but I don't appreciate you killing my favorite intern!"

" An intern?"

" Assistant… apprentice, whatever! Yes, He was just wearing a caterpillar costume!

" You mean a slave- a glorified slave. Isn't he a bit too old to be playing dress-up?"

" Let go of me! I have to see if Hiro is still alive!"

This is the second time this week your waist has slipped from the crook of my arm – that's even scarier than giant parasites from space.

" Ms. Brief… j-just wanted to bring you…poppy s-seed dressing... for salad."

That boy is barely older than Kakarrot's brat. What is wrong with the youth of this planet? Did their spines dissolve at birth? Is it that they have nothing better to do?

" You can't be serious woman? You sent him to grab a topping for your pile of greenery! The refrigeration device is ten steps away!"

" Shut up and help me, Vegeta!"

" I've got him. Where are you taking this puke?"

"We're taking him to the infirmary."

"Today's Halloween, Vegeta. People dress up today all over the world. You can't tell me you haven't seen anyone else dressed different today. Mom is a vampire, dad is a -kami I don't know…"

I can look you over all I want, but I still don't have a clue.

"Well, woman What are you supposed to be?"

" Frankenstein's bride."

" …And that is?"

" Frankenstein is a famous monster here on Earth. He was built by a scientist out of various body parts from different people. Dead people."

" A monster's wife."

" Yeah, silly. Didn't you notice my hair?"

"Yeah, silly me for paying no mind to your hair- that you change every damn day."

Silly me for not ignoring you when I thought you were about to be eaten alive. Go figure.


End file.
